Newbie to rifle question?

[rik]

Hi all,
i'm normally used to shooting 10m pistol, but not long ago i tried the club sporting rifle and loved it. I recently bought a BSA Hornet just to use as a paper puncher at 20 yds.Can anybody tell me if they do any exercises to steady when on aim or is it a case of practise practise practise?

Cheers in advance.

Rik.

[snock]

Hi, Rik.

I don't shoot target, but it's still a good idea to practice, practice, practice for any shooting discipline.

[Nige]

Breathing exercises help a great deal

[One Shot]

Before you shoot:
1: Take a breath and release it.
2: Do not breath again just yet!
3: Aim and release the shot.
4: Start breathing again!!

Works every time for me.

When you are not breathing, this takes away the movements made by the chest, neck and shoulder muscles while breathing, thereby making your aim and subsequent shot as steady as possible.

To firther explain this, with an unloaded rifle, take aim and look through your sights or scope while breathing and you will see your aim is all over the place?

Now try exactly the same procedure while NOT breathing - and what do you see?

Like i say, works every time for me.
HTH

[bullbarrel]

Lots of practice.

I started last year and rapidly increased in score so I was getting mid to high 80's/100. It took about 9 months of twice weekly practices till I was consistenly getting them in the low 90's. And there are only 8 members (out of 30 or so) who are in the A Team! And only 1 or 2 who get regular 98/100.

My best is 97.

I'm sure there is some muscle memory going on so get someone to check your stance and try to stick to it. Talk to other members about tips.

Also, put the rifle down between shots to relax your arm and if you have been in position too long and you KNOW its wandering then put the gun down, relax and pick it up again. No point in wasting a shot.

Oh, and try and enjoy it. Thats the main thing.

[rik]

Cheers everybody for your replies, there's some things for me to think about.

I was wondering if there's any actual exercises to help me steady my arm that's supporting the barrel, i know from my pistol shooting it will never be rock solid, but it's got to be steadier than it is at the moment.

Cheers in advance.

Rik.

[Punchsteve]

Cheers everybody for your replies, there's some things for me to think about.

I was wondering if there's any actual exercises to help me steady my arm that's supporting the barrel, i know from my pistol shooting it will never be rock solid, but it's got to be steadier than it is at the moment.

Cheers in advance.

Rik.

It depends on the position you're shooting in. If taking standing shots I've heard people say that you should tuck the elbow (of the arm that's supporting the barrel) into your side?

Another thing to consider is attaching a sling to it. When used correctly a sling will help steady the gun.